What Your Food Cravings Really Tell About Your Health

Ever found yourself day dreaming about a certain type of food in the middle of a class or a work meeting? This is not hunger this is called cravings, cravings don’t only happen because you are hungry, they are also be messages your body are sending you to provide a certain nutrients you have been denying your body of for long time, so it is important to listen to your cravings and just so you don’t get confused, here are some popular cravings and what they mean.

1- Fried Chicken.

If you find yourself craving fried chicken then you are either lacking on protein or needing and missing something, fried chicken is a comfort food so we may feel for it when we are depressed, sad or lonely. Food has a strong effect on improving the mood and since fried chicken is comfort food, craving it could indicate that you are in a bad mood or missing someone.

2- Chocolate.

Chocolate is known to be a perfect spirit booster, craving it could either indicate that maybe your blood sugar levels are low or that you need a boost to your mood, it could also mean that your mind is longing for a reward for any hard work it has been doing, because chocolate activate the reward neurotransmitter in the brain. Enjoying a bar of chocolate or few cubes won’t hurt that bad yet it will provide you with the needed sugar to keep you energized and will boost your mood.

Craving ice cream could mean that your body is requiring more calcium than you provide it with, yet the body calls for it in an interesting and more delicious way than just plain milk, it could also mean that you are looking for some comfort from the food, or even that your blood sugar is low or your blood pressure is high.

4- Meat.

Craving a juicy steak could mean that your body is requiring more protein that you consume or that you are deficient on vitamin B12 as it only present in animal products so if you decided to be a vegetarian all of a sudden, make sure to take supplements of this vitamin to avoid meat cravings.

5- Fruits.

Sometimes we get unexplained cravings for a certain type of fruit, a rule of thumb, whatever fruit you crave, check what nutrients it is rich in and provide your body with those nutrients, our bodies are amazing and can translate it’s need to certain nutrients into sudden cravings for the rich foods of those nutrients, craving fruits in general could also mean that you are not consuming enough fiber and your body needs fiber to eliminate waste.

6- Rice and Starchy Foods.

Rice, pasta and other Starchy Foods are quit addictive so don’t confuse their cravings to their addiction, when you eat too much of those carbohydrates rich foods, they stimulate the comfort and relaxation feeling in your body which makes your body long for them more, if you think you have not been getting adequate portions of carbohydrates in your diet then that could also be the reason why you are craving simple carbohydrates.

7- Spicy Foods.

If you are craving spicy foods then it could mean that your body is overheating and needing an assist to cool itself down, when you eat spicy food that helps your body to sweat which can regulate your body temperate, it can also mean that your body needs an assist to get rid of toxins through sweat so it pushes you to eat the thing that will make you sweat. Moreover, craving spicy foods can indicate thyroid problems because Capsacin which is a nutrient found in hot pepper helps to kick start the sluggish metabolism due to thyroid problems.